Differences
by Sherry Marie
Summary: A developing series focusing on the relationship between Yozak and Muraken. Some spoilers past episode 25 or so. Shounenai concentrating on YozakMuraken, but other pairings may be hinted at from time to time.
1. Differences

"Have you ever thought about growing your hair long again?"

Murata looked up at the question and lifted the corner of his mouth in welcome and in amusement at the ginger-haired man standing a few feet to the right of him. The boy had been spending some quiet moments away from the shrine maidens and their demands attempting to catch up on at least a few years of regional history when he had felt Yozak's quiet approach. Not quite sure if the stealth in those steps were intentional or habit, he had kept his nose buried in the thick tome in his lap until the man, after standing quietly for a few minutes, had broken the silence with this rather odd question.

Feeling suddenly and weirdly self-conscious, Murata pushed a hand into the tangled slightly wild strands of his dark hair. He chuckled lightly before squinting up at the tall man standing above him, who was smirking and quite obviously waiting for an answer.

"Longer than this?" Murata laughed, "Its kind of getting long, now. I was actually considering getting it trimmed next time I get back to Earth."

Taking the response as an invitation, Yozak closed the short distance between them and dropped down to lean against the same thick tree that Murata had propped himself against for the afternoon. His position somewhere between sitting and sprawling, he rested his head against the rough bark and looked not at the boy beside him, but at the hazy cut of horizon as he spoke.

"It looked nice when you wore it long, though. You know, back when you were The Great Sage. I was looking up at that big portrait in the hallway earlier today and it got me thinking,"

"Oh, that," Murata shrugged, feeling slightly embarrassed like he did each time someone brought up his past incarnation, "That was different."

"How come?" Yozak countered in a light tone still not looking directly at him.

"I was different," the boy replied and felt clear blue eyes finally turn to him. Observing the thin threads of unusual intensity held in that gaze, he continued, "Different hair. I Straight /I hair. If I tried to grow it like that again, well….I don't suppose you know who Gilda Ratner is, do you?" He rubbed at the back of his head and laughed sheepishly.

"Nope, Your Highness. Can't say that I know her," was the drawled reply before the man turned away again, faint smile still teasing his lips.

Murata waited for him to say more, and felt a bit uncomfortable when the silence between them stretched. This uneven tension was not something that he often experienced while in Yozak's company. Almost from the beginning, there had been an unspoken understanding and ease between the two of them; the kind that could only exist between habitual conspirators, that made their interaction easy and natural. The Sage couldn't quite figure what had placed undue strain on that relationship, and he found this touch of uncertainty unnerving. "I was different," he found himself repeating almost to himself, "I'm Murata Ken now, and I don't even like long hair."

All at once, the slight tautness in the body beside him eased, and Yozak's smile didn't so much grow as turn a bit more natural. He responded with a simple, "Ah" and Murata was puzzled to hear faint traces of relief in the softly spoken word. Then, the red-head glanced over at the book in his lap before looking up to catch his eye.

"You should read to me."

Murata choked out a surprised laugh.

"You want me to read from this? This is a book on regional history. It's pretty boring, you know."

"So?" Closing his eyes, Yozak slid down until he was most definitely sprawling, and Murata's thigh was warmed at the point where it now rested against the edge of the man's shoulder, "It's been a while since I was treated to a good bedtime story."

"I'm at the chapter where it discuses the planning and development of various sewer systems," he warned.

Yozak squinted an eye open. "Really? And you said this was going to be boring."

The squint turned into a lazy wink before the eye closed completely. Reminding himself that he was about 4000 years past the point where he should be learning how to blush, Murata began to read out loud.


	2. Speculation

Yozak stretched out his legs and shifted into a more comfortable position as he continued to scan the surrounding area for any signs of problems. However, the night continued peacefully, and he found himself more than grateful for the reprieve from the almost constant trouble that seemed to follow his young king wherever he went. Tonight, he, along with Yuuri, Conrad, and The Sage, were camped out in a secure area of forest as they made their way to a nearby village to conduct some hopefully simple business. It was something that Yozak and Conrad could have taken care of themselves, but once Yuuri had heard their plans, he wheedled his way into the traveling party.

Yozak couldn't really blame the kid for wanting a break. Ever since he had returned to their world two weeks ago, Gunter had him under wraps almost constantly in an attempt to fill the poor kid's head with as much history and instruction as possible. He could only imagine how stifling that must be, so when Yuuri had approached him and Conrad making noise about needing to be out interacting with his people, it didn't take much convincing for the two of them to take mercy on the boy and let him come along.

It was a surprise, however, when The Sage had met them at the gates on their way out and asked to come along as well. How he had even known where they were heading was beyond Yozak, like many things about the boy and the eerie intuition that he carried, but he would be lying if he said he minded the additional company.

No, he certainly didn't I mind /I that company in the least, and proof could be found tonight. The two of them had gotten talking throughout most of the day, and when His Highness had difficulty sleeping that night, he had sought out Yozak on his watch and had asked to stay with him for a bit until he was able to rest. They had continued their talks in low voices, and the spy was finding a great deal of amusement in the stories the boy told him of his "enslavement" by the shrine maidens.

"Honestly, Yozak," he complained with good nature, "one would think it would be heaven to be surrounded by all of those beautiful girls all day and night. But they constantly have me running around fixing door knobs and leaky pipes! I can barely find time to get any studying done at all."

Yozak chuckled and shook his head. Then, feeling playful, he turned to his companion and casually remarked, "You know, I'm not sure how far you've gotten through all of those history books that you've been peeling through, but there are some points of interesting speculation surrounding your past incarnation…" Yozak's voice trailed off into a teasing drawl that caused Murata to grin back at him.

"Oh?" he asked playing along, "What kind of 'interesting speculation' are we talking about? If this has anything to do with that herder and his prize sheep then I just want to emphasize that the man was known throughout the county as a habitual liar. Plus, I was very very drunk."

It was a testament to Yozak's many years of training and evidence of his great skill as a spy that he was able to stop himself from laughing too loudly.

"Really? I can't say that I've heard about that one, Your Highness. One day, perhaps that's a subject on which you wouldn't mind enlightening me."

Still grinning, Murata rolled his large dark eyes upward as if to consider the request.

"The speculation that I was referring to actually involves you along with our most esteemed Original King."

Murata's eyes returned to his still amused, but now tinged with newborn wariness. For a moment, Yozak considered diverting the conversation to easier things, not wanting to risk the comfortable air so often between them, but his curiosity, as it tended to do from time to time, got the best of him.

"Let's just say that the exact nature of your relationship has been subject to many interesting theories over the last four thousand years."

"Has it? How fascinating..."

It was pretty apparent that the boy was not going to make this easy for him, which really, was no great surprise.

"Yes, Your Highness. There is a great deal of legend that hint that the two of you may have been a I little /I bit more than just king and advisor," Yozak winked brazenly, "If you know what I mean."

Murata's grin widened as he responded quite calmly, "We were many different things to each other. We shared a lot of years and a great deal of history with one another."

"Were you lovers?"

Yozak himself was startled at the bluntness of his own question, unable to believe that he had just gone and blurted it out like that. It was clear that Murata had also been caught off guard by his directness, though he seemed to recover his composure quickly. With a ghost of a smile still playing at the corner of his mouth, he regarded Yozak calmly. His eyes, however, though friendly and kind, now seemed to look a bit older.

"This seems to be a topic of a great interest to you," he observed.

Yozak was mortified at the sudden sensation of unexpected heat across his face, and the widening of Murata's eyes as he noticed the flush only added fuel to the embarrassment. He offered a strained chuckle to try and dispel some tension now heavy in the air, but nevertheless, forged ahead.

"I suppose I'm asking you if you loved him," he said quietly, before remembering to add, "Your Highness."

Murata looked away. Silence settled and stretched, and Yozak was starting to regret the entire conversation. He was quietly berating himself for being such a bumbling blunt nosey idiot, when he finally noticed that the boy's eyes were fixed once again on him. When Murata spoke, his voice was quiet with understanding and bitter-sweet confession.

"I did love him. There have been a very few since, in all the long stretch of my memory, that I have managed to love even a fraction as dearly," Murata paused there, and Yozak waited patiently, enthralled, for the boy to finish. "But, I did not love him in the manner in which he wanted me to," the dark eyes bore into his, "the way in which he loved me."

"Oh," and it was such an inadequate thing to say in the face of such a revelation, but there really wasn't anything else he could offer. They sat in silence for a bit, before Yozak commented, "That must have been tough."

"For him or for me?"

"Both," he responded, suddenly thinking of clear kind-hearted light brown eyes, life-long friendship, and sad gentle refusal.

"I suppose," he glanced at Yozak for a second before looking away. "Besides, my attentions of that sort were, at the time, diverted elsewhere."

"Were they?" Yozak shook himself from his clouding thoughts and raised an eyebrow in interest.

Murata nodded. "Hm. You know, Sir Weller looks a great deal like his ancestor. I often think…"

At Yozak's startled choking noise, Murata looked up at him with a bright mischievous smile. He quickly stuck out his tongue before laughing, "You really are too easy sometimes."

Just like that, the heaviness created between them faded to ease and understanding and good humor. "You know, Your Highness," Yozak leaned into The Sage's personal space as he confessed in a voice just a tone lower than its usual pitch, " I That /I has been subject to quite some interesting speculation as well."

It was more than gratifying to see a blush bloom on a face other than his own, and he took a moment longer than was strictly necessary to draw back from his lean.

"I see," Murata responded, grinning and seeming just a little bit breathless. Yozak, preoccupied with being thoroughly charmed by the way Murata's eyes were suddenly unable to meet his own, almost missed the softly added "One day, perhaps that's a subject on which you wouldn't mind enlightening me."


End file.
